Cottonseed with a high (+)- to (-)-gossypol enantiomer ratio favorable to broiler production.

This study was designed to evaluate the relative toxicity of (+)- and (-)-gossypol enantiomers in 0-3-week-old broilers. Treatments consisted of broiler starter diets formulated with either a glandless, which did not contain gossypol, a commercial glanded [62. 2% (+)-gossypol], or a glanded moco [83.2% (+)-gossypol] crushed cottonseed (CCS) (six replicates/treatment) plus a soybean meal negative control. Glandless cottonseed was mixed with the moco cottonseed (2.4% free gossypol) so that both the commercial glanded and moco glanded cottonseeds contained equivalent concentrations of free gossypol (2.0%). The cottonseed treatments were added at 5 and 10% of the diet. Body weights and feed conversions were determined weekly. Body weights and feed-to-gain ratios of broilers fed 5 and 10% glandless CCS and 5% moco CCS were not significantly different. Broilers receiving 10% commercial glanded CCS weighed significantly less than those subjected to all other treatments. Feed-to-gain ratios were significantly higher for broilers receiving 10% commercial glanded and 10% moco CCS as compared to 5% moco and glandless CCS, 10% glandless CCS, and control. Relative liver weights of birds receiving 10% moco CCS were significantly less than those of birds receiving 10% commercial CCS. The data clearly showed that broilers fed moco CCS containing a relatively high (+)- to (-)-gossypol enantiomer ratio performed better than broilers receiving commercial CCS with a lower (+)- to (-)-gossypol enantiomer ratio.

Evaluation of sorghum ergot toxicity in broilers.

Three experiments evaluated the performance of broilers fed sorghum ergot consisting of sphacelia/sclerotia of Claviceps africana present in tailings removed by conditioning of seed from grain sorghum hybrid seed production fields near Uvalde (Experiments 1 and 2) and Dumas (Experiment 3), Texas. Percentage sphacelia/sclerotia and total alkaloid content, respectively, in sorghum ergot tailings were 8% and 11.3 ppm for Uvalde and 75% and 235 ppm for Dumas. Sorghum ergot and control sorghum diets were based on the NRC (1994) requirements for starting broilers. In Experiment 1, neither growth nor feed efficiency were significantly reduced in male broilers fed sorghum ergot from hatch to 3 wk of age, but liver weights were significantly greater than those in the control. In Experiment 2, straight-run broilers were raised to 6 wk of age in floor pens using a three-phase feeding program. Sorghum ergot significantly reduced gain in 4-wk-old broilers and cumulative body weight at 5 wk. Feed conversion was significantly reduced during all three phases of feeding. In Experiment 3, control sorghum and the 75% ergot tailings were added to corn-soy basal diets at rates of 2.5, 5, and 10% by weight and fed to male broilers from hatch to 3 wk of age. Sorghum ergot did not significantly reduce growth, but, during Weeks 2 and 3, feed-to-gain ratios were higher. Neither type nor concentration of sorghum ergot significantly affected relative liver weights. We did not observe significant mortality or obvious symptoms of ergot toxicity, such as necrotic lesions of the feet or vesicular dermatitis of the comb, in any of the three experiments.